Nigerian-born Kemi Badenoch has been knocked out of the United Kingdom Prime Minister race, leaving the final three hopefuls to battle it out ahead of the final MP ballot.
Badenoch, a former levelling up minister, came fourth with 59 votes, exiting the contest to replace Boris Johnson.
Other contestants — Rishi Sunak, Penny Mordaunt, and Liz Truss – are still in the race.
Sunak was backed in Tuesday’s vote by 118 MPs, while Ms Mordaunt beat Ms Truss to second place with 92 votes to 86.
READ ALSO: Boris Johnson quits as UK Prime Minister
Sunak would be joined by Mordaunt and Truss in vying for a place in the final two to face the vote put to party members.
The three contenders will be whittled down to two on Wednesday, while Tory party members’ final decision on who will become prime minister will be announced on September 5, 2022.
Reacting, Badenoch said: “I’m grateful to my colleagues and the party members who have supported me.
“This campaign began less than two weeks ago. What we’ve achieved demonstrates the level of support for our vision of change for our country and for the Conservative Party. Thank you,” she stated.
Meanwhile, Boris Johnson has stripped the Tory party whip from senior MP Tobias Ellwood for his “failure to support” the government in Monday’s confidence vote.
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